Despite the fact that there were still ten days left until the royal event, which was the first royal debutante in several years, countless nobles were gathering in the royal capital.
Should I say that these days, if you go out on the street, you will see nobles?
Perhaps because so many nobles had gathered, the lights in the royal capital never went out even at night for the past two weeks.
Party after party took place, and it was not uncommon to see lower-class nobles partying day and night and even into the early hours of the morning, falling asleep drunk on the streets.
And today too.
“Your Majesty, you are also worried. What if there are some impure forces? They are forces that have not caused much damage to the capital anyway. Those guys, if we have our knights, we can take them down in an instant.”
“I wonder if you would want to do that as your highness. You just have a lot of worries because you are in a high position.”
“To relieve that worry, we must show in the war games how strong our family’s strength is!”
“I’ll be waiting, Jackson. I look forward to your performance.”
“Of course!”
The banquet hall was not lit. It was still emitting even more heat.
In the middle of a noisy banquet hosted by a count, there was a group of people making loud and boisterous noises.
He seemed to be quite old, but perhaps because he was with friends, his conversation was somewhat childish, but no one took it personally.
'I guess Sir Jackson needs money.'
'Well, that family doesn't have much wealth, but they raised the knights so recklessly that they couldn't help but be desperate.'
Because that's a struggle.
Nobles without any real estate or proper possessions were widespread in the South, and for this reason alone there were many who struggled to get attention.
It was obvious that the fact that he was talking so exaggeratedly was an act of self-promotion and hoping that many people would come to watch the war game.
For the aristocrats, attention is beneficial, and fame is money.
Although it is a war game that is nothing more than a pastime for the nobles, if you win, you will gain fame and may even receive the support of wealthy people who want to borrow your military power.
But if you lose… .
'I'll lose everything.'
Well, it would be fun to laugh at losers.
The nobles responded with laughter, hiding their double-crossing ridicule.
I hope that it will give them a little bit of attractive stimulation in their boring lives.
“…It’s horrible, really.”
A young man who was watching all this from behind clicked his tongue in disgust.
Even though they are called nobles, they show absolutely no 'dignity' or 'nobility'.
All I see is arrogant superficiality.
“Don’t be like that. People like that are what keep the economy going.”
“That too.”
“Thanks to them opening their wallets, people working in various occupations will have a prosperous winter. It’s a good thing.”
“Hmm… I see. That’s true.”
It is certainly a convincing statement.
The flowers, crops, and fruits that made up this banquet hall were purchased in bulk from various farmers, and even the smallest things like alcohol, food, cutlery, and towels were custom-made by putting all the workshops in the royal capital to work.
It must have been about a year's worth of work that was received at once, but I wondered if the people were smiling brightly even in the midst of their busy schedule.
what,
“I think the one who laughs the most is your lord’s wallet.”
Jack seemed to have anticipated all this and was amazed at his master's ability to lavish money on the kingdom.
This banquet hall alone was his, and the wealth he had earned over the past two weeks alone would have been enough to cover the construction costs and he was already recording a huge amount of debt. He had purchased dozens of large and small banquet halls in this way.
It must be a great, if not enormous, skill.
“Unfortunately, I don’t have a wallet. Instead of putting it in my wallet, I just reinvest it at the top.”
“Well, just how rich do you plan on becoming, my lord…?”
“What, I just need a decent amount of money to live off of. It’s still not enough.”
“Ha, the instructor said, ‘there is more to it than meets the eye,’ and now I understand what he meant.”
“Maybe so.”
He was smiling faintly, but soon he patted Jack's shoulder, whose face still had a warm glow.
“Jack, you’re still angry.”
“Ah, this is….”
“Isn’t it just their shallowness that makes you angry?”
“…….”
“Isn’t the instructor angry at those who take lightly the peace that our master achieved through his blood, sweat, and tears? Am I wrong?”
“…My lord, you understand my heart so well, even though I myself do not know it clearly.”
Jack smiled bitterly at the black-haired young man who seemed to see right through his mind, and towards him,
“Don’t get angry. There are always those who are full of confidence without even shedding blood. If you get angry about every single thing like that, you’ll only be hurting yourself.”
“That’s…right.”
“If you know it, that’s fine. Don’t waste your energy on something useless. It’s a waste of time.”
“…The way you speak, my lord, seems similar to the instructor, haha.”
“……I guess it moved.”
Roen, he ended up smiling faintly.
Remembering that you don't normally speak like this.
But that doesn't mean I feel bad.
Just a little bit… .
'I guess I am also overcoming my 'past'.'
An illusion of time that may be the 'future' to others, but is the past to him.
Clearly, the memories and scars were still engraved in his mind and soul in the illusion of time, but fortunately, Roen did not act like the day before, struggling in the memories and scars.
'The number of seizures has decreased.'
Even the day before, he would sometimes have a seizure due to the flood of memories that would swallow his mind, causing him to break things around him, or the [power] that was dormant within him to run wild, but these seizures have been decreasing significantly recently.
'It started after I met the instructor.'
To be exact, it was after being indoctrinated with his teachings and receiving various counseling sessions that things gradually got better.
… Well, if you look at it one way, it could be said that they are being forcibly treated through brute force.
'I can't go crazy even if it's because I'm scared of that fist.'
Just one blow with immense force could shatter your head.
'The more I think about it, the more absurd it becomes.'
It was almost comical that he was afraid of being beaten and not someone else, and that he was the one who came to his senses.
However, Roen did not think this change was all that bad.
That makes sense.
'I will also grow through this change.'
Whether it's mental or swordsmanship.
Roen simply viewed this phenomenon positively.
While he was immersed in this strange emotion, a murmur came to Roen's ear.
“What's going on?”
“…It seems like a new noble has arrived. Let’s see…. Oh, he’s on the list. It looks like he’s a guest invited by the count who hosted this party.”
“Guest?”
Roen blinked, seeming doubtful.
It wasn't that he was surprised by the guest's arrival, but rather that he couldn't understand why the nobles suddenly became so noisy because of a single guest.
“Oh, my lord, you haven’t heard that rumor lately because you’ve been busy, right?”
“A rumor?”
“It’s nothing special, but I heard that a woman who has been taking over the social world has appeared recently.”
“?”
“Well, rumor has it that she is an incredible beauty. When the noble Yeongsiks see her, they go out of their way to hold her hand, but she won’t even let them hold her hand, and she refuses to even kiss the back of their hand…. And yet, it is said that there are a great number of people who, far from hating her, are desperate to catch her eye. It is said that among those who want to catch her eye, there are not only noble Yeongsiks, but also nobles with titles.”
“…Is this by any chance the content of a recently popular play?”
For a moment, Roen frowned.
Because it was such a ridiculous story.
It was a natural reaction to hear that nobles, who were no better than corpses except for their pride, were flirting just because of a woman's beauty.
Rumors are just that, if it's to that extent, then what's… .
Again─.
“…….”
Crack, crack.
… The next moment, Roen opened his eyes wide as if he had seen a ghost, unable to continue his thoughts, and everyone in the banquet hall fell silent and opened their mouths.
The only thing that pierced the silence was the sound of the heels of shoes hitting the floor made of pure white marble, and people could not hide their shock.
“…The rumors were true.”
“I remember the shock I felt when His Highness Isis first entered the social scene.”
The woman who appeared, cutting through the rapidly moving crowd of nobles, was beautiful.
Her red hair reminiscent of roses and her mysterious wine-colored eyes reminiscent of aged wine naturally captured people's attention, and furthermore, the seductiveness she exuded was a sexy aura that seduced both men and women.
The black dress that matched her well further enhanced her charm, and people looked at her as if they were viewing a work of art.
But strangely, no one approached them carelessly.
Just standing there, as if staring blankly at a rose blooming under the moonlight in a dark street.
The charm that one woman exuded was so great.
…enough to make you doubt if they are the same person.
and,
“Where on earth did that damn thing dare to…!”
The young man, who 'knew she was not human', was seething with anger.
Because just looking at her couldn't help but trigger past traumas in her mind!
“Judia….”
It was Roen who gritted his teeth and spat out her name, and he was planning to go down straight away.
It was an impulsive act, but he felt he couldn't hold back any longer without venting his anger.
He couldn't just sit still when he saw her appearing exactly as he remembered her from the past.
Even though there was a risk that his identity, which he had been trying to hide, could be revealed at the banquet hall, Roen did not hesitate, and at the moment when he was about to proceed while ignoring Jack's voice that was trying to stop him,
Thud!
“!?!?”
… an irresistible ‘force’ came over him.
“This kid’s eyes are spinning. Is that how you usually act when you’re excited?”
A familiar voice.
Roen furrowed his brows as he realized at once who was the master of the force that controlled him.
“…Let go, Instructor. Even if you are the Instructor, you cannot stop me this time… Who are you?”
But soon, Roen tilted his head, forgetting even that he was angry.
“Who are you? Don’t you recognize me?”
“??”
He was a handsome man.
He was also a person with a refreshing charm.
It was a very impressive face, and one that was hard to forget once you saw it.
In that sense, it was Roen's first time seeing this man, and he was feeling confused.
“Ah, is it because this is your first time seeing this? Just a moment….”
Kkwaddudduk!
“…….”
“Oh, this is difficult because it’s partially solved. Blackie, is there any vacancy? My clothes are about to rip.”
“…….”
“Blackie?”
“…Instructor?”
"why?"
“……Are you human?”
"huh?"
“…Ugh….”
…what kind of transformation is this person undergoing?
He was a regressor who had forgotten his anger and let out a blank laugh in shock.
